Humidifying apparatus



June 4, 1935.

H. 1.. HUSSON HUMIDIFYING APPARATUS Filed Feb; 27,

ATTORNEY Patented June 4, i935 STATES PATENT OFFICE v 2,tt3,933

" o arrmarns Application February 27, 1934, Serial No. 713,115

4 Claims.

This invention relates to humidifying apparatus and more particularly toan apparatus to be used in connection with heating systems to humidifythe air in buildings:

5 An object of the invention is to provide an apparatus of the kinddescribed which shall be simple, efiicient, automatic in operation, andself responsive to changes either in the amount of water evaporatedthereby or in the relative 1o humidity of the air aflected thereby.

With this and other objects in view one embodiment of the inventioncontemplates .an assembly of a plurality of horizontally disposedcombination heating and evaporating sections having internal chambersfed with heating fluid,

steam, hot water or the like, in customary fashion, and having openexternal evaporating pockets or troughs in cascade relation and heatedby conduction from the heating chambers.

0 These evaporating. pockets are supplied with water from the customarywater supply of the building. Means are provided to regulate the supplyof water to the evaporating troughs in accordance with the rate ofevaporative consumption, comprising a float in one of the troughs actingthrough an electrical circuit including a mercury switch and a solenoidto open and close the water supply valve. ,Means may further be providedsuch'as a humidostat connected in the same circuit to effect control ofthe water supply in accordance with the amount of moisture contained inthe air.

Other objects and features of the invention will appear from thefollowing detailed description of one embodiment thereof taken inconnection with the accompanying drawing in which the same referencenumerals are supplied to identical parts in the several figures and inwhich Fig. 1 is a partly diagrammatic broken view in front elevation ofan air heating and humidifying apparatus embodying the invention; Fig. 2is a transverse vertical section thereof on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a view in end elevation of the disconnected core of a modifiedform, and

Fig. 4 is a view thereof in front elevation.

In the embodiment of the invention herein disclosed, there are fivehorizontally disposed combined heating and evaporating sections 10,

of metal, arranged in a vertical stack and connected. by and supportedon interconnecting pipe sections II in well known fashion. The sectionsI0 have internal chambers, not shown,

66 to receive steam, hot water. or other heating One end of each troughfloor is pierced by an overflow pipe 15 which delivers excess water fromeach upper trough to the next below. These overflow pipes are located atalternate ends of successive troughs so that the water flows the wholelength of any intermediate trough before being delivered to the nextbelow. The overflow pipe I5 of the lowest trough is connected to a drainpipe in the building system. The entire stack is supported on the floorof the building by legs 2| attached to the lowest section I!) andprovided with means such as the screws 22 whereby to adjust the stack toa level position.

A vertical supply pipe I6 is located beside the stack of sections ID andhas a supply nozzle I! for each of the three upper sections l0, adaptedto deliver water into the corresponding trough H. The pipe |6-isconnected to the customary ,water supply 23 of the building through areducing valve l8 and a supply valve l9 operated to open and close by asolenoid 20. Each nozzle I1 is provided with a removable closure cap 30.

The lowest section III is formed at the outlet end of its trough I4 witha well or pocket 24 in which is located a float 25. Adjacent tl e pocketis a post 26 on the top of which is pivoted a horizontal lever 21. Oneend of the lever is pivotally attached underneath to the float 25 andthe other end of the lever carries a counterpoise' 28. A mercury switch29 is positioned on top of the lever to tilt therewith. The counterpoise28 may be threaded on the lever to permit of adiustment longitudinallythereon.

A connection box 3| is provided in any'convenient location and isconnected by wires 32, and 33 to the customary electric current supplywires 34 and 35 of the building. Wires 36 and 31 lead from the box tothe terminals of the mercury switch 29. Wire 36. is connected throughthe box to wire 32 and supply wire 34. Wire 31 may be connected throughthe box to a wire 38 leading to one terminal of a humidostat 40, fromwhose other terminal a wire 39 leads back to the box and is connectedtherethrough to a wire 4| leading to one terminal of the solenoid 26.From the other terminal of the solenoid, another wire 42 leads back tothe box and is connected to the wire 33 and the supply wire 35'. Thusthe mercury switch29, humidostat 40 and solenoid 26 are connected inseries across the supply wires 34 and 35.

The construction and mechanics of operation of the switch, humidostatand solenoid are not described or disclosed as these are standard andwell known pieces of electrical apparatus whose nature, construction andindividual function are well known in commerce and manufacturing, andare furthermore not relevant to the present invention. Sufiice to saythat a mercury switch such as 29 will close or open a circuit throughits terminals upon being tilted in one direction or the other, ahumidostat will close .or open a circuit through its terminals whenexposed to air having more or less than a predeterminably variabledegree of relative humidity, and a solenoid such as 20 will operate toactuate any mechanism operable by a push or a pull such as the valve l9upon the flowing of an electric current through the solenoid.

walls and a slightly sloping inner rim terminating inwardly-in adownwardly extending vertical peripheral lip 41 adapted to be receivedin the trough 46. Ashort drain pipe 48 affixed in the trough 46 leadsfrom the trough 46 to the trough M of the top section l0.

In the alternative form of core or stack shown in Figs. 3 and 4, theexternal stand pipe I 6 is replaced by a supply pipe 49 extending up-through the center of the stack and provided with supply aperturescloseable with plugs 5| homologous to the supply nozzles l1 and caps 30of Figs. 1 and 2.

In operation, with cold weather outside the building, the valve I3 isopened andthe intery ior chambers of the'sections l0 are filled withsteam, hot water, or the like. The wires 32 and 33 are connected to thesupply wires 34 and 35. The well 24 is empty and-the switch Y 29 inconsequence tilted down: to the right and it pours into the top, of theoverflow pipe I5 and down into the next lower trough, andso on until thewater'fills the well 24, raises the float 25 and finally operates themercury switch to break the circuit. Immediately the solenoid 26 t:gosesthe valve l3 and stops the flow of we r cuit open so long as the airissufficiently moist.

On the other hand, if the troughs l4 are all full of water and the'airis not yet sufiiciently moist the humidostat will keep the circuitclosed at its station, but the float 25 will keep the switch 20 open andso will hold the valve |9 closed to prevent waste of water. Failure ofcurrent in the mains 34 and 35 will also keep the valve l9 closed. Ifthe valve l9 be held open by any accidental failure, the excess waterwill be simply wasted down the last overflow pipe l5 into the wastesystem of the building.

At 'timeswhen the apparatus is working at full evaporative capacity, thewater charged air coming up from the top section may be heavily enoughloaded with'water to give up moisture by condensation on the first solidobject contacted. This will be the inner surfaces of the housing top 44.Such condensation will gather and flow down into the trough 46 andthence by way of the pipe 48 back into the evaporating troughs I4. Tofacilitate the run off of such condensate, a false top52 may be put intothe top 44 sloping down to enable the moisture to run down instead ofgathering in hanging drops.

.A somewhat simpler and less sensitive, although often sufiicientarrangement may be made by omitting the humidostat and its wires andconnecting wires 3'! directly to wire 4| in the box 3|, as by a shortcircuiting plug, or fuse, or the like.

The embodiments of the invention herein disclosed are illustrativemerely and may be modified and departed from in many ways withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention as pointed out inand limited solely by the appended claims.

What is claimed is: I

1. An air heating and humidifying apparatus comprising a plurality ofrelatively vertically arranged elements each having internal chambers toreceive a heating fluid and having an open external trough to receivewater, means to admit a heating medium to the internal .chambers, meansto supply water to one of the troughs including a valve, means to leadthe water in cascade through the troughs, a float in one of the troughs,a mercury switch connected to the float to be operated thereby, and asolenoid in circuit with the switch to operate the water supply valve. 1

2. An'air heating and humidifying apparatus comprising a plurality ofrelatively vertically arranged elements each having internal chambers toreceive a heating fluid and having an open external trough to receivewater, means to admeans to supply water to one of the troughs includinga valve, means to lead the water in cascade through the troughs, a floatin one of the troughs, a mercury switch connected to the float.

to be operated thereby, a solenoid' in circuit with the switch tooperate the water supply valve, and a circuit making and breaking humita heating medium to the internal chambers,

midostat connected in series with the switch and the solenoid.

3. In an air humidifier, the combination'with:

means to heat air and means to supply moisture thereto, of a housingtherefor having means to return moisture condensed therein to themoisture supply means comprising a memher within the top of the housingadapted to leadmoisture condensed thereon to a wall of the housing, anda trough to receive the coninto the trough. A

HARRY L, 'Hus soN. 1ov

